The death of Jesus de Miguel has shocked Spanish football, and after the tragedy another question has emerged: what consequences could Andorra goalkeeper Jesus Owono, protagonist of the fatal collision with the Tenerife striker, face?
The 25-year-old goalkeeper from Equatorial Guinea was sent off with a red card for a dangerous challenge in the final minutes of the Segunda Division match, in which he struck De Miguel with his knee in the upper body.
The incident occurred in added time, when Owono came far out of his area, practically up to the halfway line, to challenge for the ball. His movement in the air was uncontrolled and ended in the serious collision, after which the striker lost his life.
Beyond the sporting sanction, the possibility of criminal liability for the goalkeeper is now also being discussed. However, according to sports law expert Miguel Galán, such a scenario appears unlikely.
“When it comes to a contested ball and a late challenge, the current tendency of the Spanish Supreme Court is toward dismissing the case or declaring innocence,” Galán explained on social networks.
According to the interpretation of Spanish case law, the decisive element in such cases is the player’s intent and not only the severity of the consequences. Overly aggressive or dangerous challenges during a football action are usually handled within sports discipline and not necessarily as a criminal offence.
Meanwhile, Owono is going through extremely difficult psychological moments. According to reporting by Cadena COPE, the goalkeeper was deeply shaken even before learning of De Miguel’s death and had expressed a wish to privately ask the footballer’s family for forgiveness.